


The Weirdos

by BleedingBeauty



Category: Original Work
Genre: Action, Adventure, BoyxBoy, Cold, Ice Powers, Incomplete, M/M, Monster - Freeform, Monsters, Mutant, Mutants, Mystery, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Romance, Teens, Winter, bxb - Freeform, frost - Freeform, teen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-08
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-06-24 02:45:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 8,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15620805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BleedingBeauty/pseuds/BleedingBeauty





	1. Chapter 1

They aren’t like anyone you’ve ever met before. They’re strange. You might call them weird. You might think they’re funny. Something definitely off about them. But, they are just like everyone else. Trying to survive this world, clinging to life and a will to live. Love.   
In their own ways, they are beautiful. In the heart. In the mind. In the soul. They are innocent little creatures that wouldn’t hurt anyone who hadn’t hurt them. Be wary of hurting them, though, for they can be terrifying if they please. But, mostly, they are sweet. Just children.  
They grow and learn every day, like you might do. They crave knowledge about the outside world and the one they live in. They want to learn about outer space and science. Everything else that children often get excited about.  
They don’t wish to be seen as any different than you. And they’re not. You just might struggle to see it.


	2. Chapter 2

It was unbelievably awesome to be alone and afraid. Not to feel it, but to actually be it. And he was. Abandoned by his family and having had ever only known his mother and father, he had nowhere else to turn. Not even friends. He didn’t know who to trust, where to go, or how he’d get anywhere unless it be by foot. Why was he alone? Why was he afraid? His parents accused him of working with the devil after he touched a window and the entire thing froze over. Including the bottle of soda on the windowsill. And the strangest part of it all? It was the middle of summer in one of the hottest places in the US. Arizona. His parents were scared of him, and even more frightened when his once brown hair, turned white. He didn’t even recognize his own reflection. How did this happen? Why did this happen? Was it a curse? What would he do? How would he get rid of it? Could he get rid of it? What even was it? He was pacing, staring at his hands, flipping them over and under and over and under. He hadn’t tried to touch anything since leaving the house. He was afraid of something similar happening to other things, such as people. Such as himself. Would he be safe with a pair of gloves to cover his ‘wicked touched’ hands? He couldn’t help but remember his mother’s horrified face as the glass bottle shattered. It startled a scream out of her.  
“What the hell did you do?”  
“I don’t know! It… It just happened!”  
He was almost as scared and horrified as she was. He didn’t know what was happening to him. He still didn’t know. His father… God, his father…  
“What kind of dealings are you doing with the devil?! Your hands are his wicked touch! This… This witchcraft will not be allowed under our roof. You need to go. Get out and never come back, you beast of Satan!”  
“Dad, please! Don’t do this to me… I-I’m not evil! I would never-”  
His cheek still stung from the slap that was issued. And the roaring that came after… It didn’t stop until he left the house. It wasn’t right. It was almost like… his parents were the ones dealing with Satan. For how could a parent disown their only flesh and blood?  
They had just moved into a new town, Florence, after the death of his last grandparent. His only other family was his aunt Evelyn. His parents had likely called her by now and told her of his misdoings. He couldn’t go to her. And all his friends were back in California. Not to mention he had no way of contacting them. His iPhone was back at his home. Well, what used to be his home. He’d forgotten it on the bed while he packed his things into a couple of duffel bags. He felt so… betrayed. And hot. Very… very hot. It was Arizona, anyway. He was at a park near his home, the midday sun beating down on him. It was supposed to reach 107° that day. He missed California, with its cool sea breeze and drizzles every now and then. It sucked when it got humid, but it was home and it was beautiful and his perfect kind of crazy. Though, it had its problems, too. Such as the fires that always seemed to be burning. And the housing that costed too much and put more and more people out on the streets. Every place has its good sides and bad sides, just like a person. You had to look passed the bad to be able to see the goodness within. Why couldn’t his parents do that for him?  
God, he wished for a breeze. Or some shade. Or both. And a cool drink. But, the closest place serving free drinks and pricey food was about a mile away. He’d already been outside for a few hours. It would take him at least fifteen to twenty minutes to get there. He would’ve gone to the neighbors, but the neighborhood was sketchy. He even heard the cops call the place, ‘tragic ranch’, as a nickname for the housing development, magic ranch. The signs said ‘magic ranch at Oasis’, but most people liked to call it Oasis for some reason. When the bus driver asked you where you were going and you said magic ranch, they’d correct you and say, ‘Oasis’. Then you’d have to agree and find a place to sit. The kids on the bus were loud and obnoxious. Playing music on their Bluetooth speakers, getting yelled at by the bus driver to get it turned off. Sometimes they sang inappropriate songs, but the driver was helpless against that. School… What was he going to do about school? He wanted to graduate. He only had a couple of weeks left and then he’d be a senior in high school the upcoming school year. He was only seventeen. This was too much for some silly little seventeen year old who already had too much on his plate, trying to figure out his place in the world. This was all... It was too much.  
He had so much swarming through his mind and he was beginning to panic. He didn’t know what he was going to do. He was kicked out of his only home. He had no friends at school. And even if he did, he wouldn’t know where they lived or if they even lived close enough. Plus, he had no phone to call ahead and ask for directions or to be picked up. Magic ranch, er, Oasis, was on the outskirts of Florence. The actual town of Florence, well, that was a fifteen minute drive from Oasis. You do the math. He had no plans. Had no phone to google anything and figure himself out. He was stuck. At least for the moment.


	3. Chapter 3

He ended up at the McDonald’s, one mile away from home, sipping on his fourth cup of iced water. Thankfully, it was ice from a machine, not his own hands. He didn’t buy anything, knowing well enough that money would definitely be tight. His only cash was a twenty and a few fives and ones. He had a ton of change as well, never one to throw away money, like some. How would he ever survive on his own? First off, he didn’t have a job. Second, he didn’t have a bike or a car. No transportation to and from a job even if he could get one when he had nothing. Not to mention his new strange… Ability. How could he keep that hidden at a job? It was all so frustrating! He set his head down on the table and held it with both hands in a sort of protective manner. There was so much that he wanted, so much that he needed, none of it he could get. A, his phone. B, comfort. C, shelter. D, food. Drink, he could definitely get. They handed that out for free as a law. But, only water. What was his first step into living on his own? Fending for himself with his freak new ability? He groaned. All this thinking was giving him a headache and causing him to stress more and more. He had to think simpler. He didn’t need to look at the whole picture quite yet. What did he need now? He was hydrated and he didn’t need anymore food until that night. For now, he needed to research shelters or something for the night. Which meant he needed a phone or a computer or something. That was the first step. That wasn’t so hard, was it? He could do that. Just ask someone. Or go to the library. But, the nearest library was about eleven miles away and would take roughly three hours on foot to reach. And in this heat? Well, he’d hardly survive. So, he could do that, or he could ask someone for a phone. But if they all said no, his only other choice would be to go back home and retrieve his damn phone.  
Instead of going home and getting the phone, risking being hurt again by his parents, he went to the Safeway gas station next to the McDonald’s. No one would allow him to use their phones, probably afraid he’d steal it. He decided, after much thinking, he’d try and hitch a ride to the Florence library. He didn’t know if anyone would be going that way, but one could hope, right? He asked around and got several strange looks and many ‘no’s’. He felt his appearance had something to do with it. He probably looked rather sketchy with his white hair and dark clothing. He just happened to wear black that day. Why oh why did he choose black? He had all but given up and was sitting in the shade next to the doors of the gas station. It gave him more time to think and think was one of the last things he wanted to do. He didn’t want to remember what happened at home, a few hours before. He didn’t want to confront the fact that he was a weirdo now. He had some strange magical ability like the stupid snow queen from that movie Frozen. It just… Appeared. And he didn’t know what things he could do with it now. Would it be harmful to the world? Or would it be useful? What kind of things could he even do with it? He looked down at his hands, a frown forming on his face. He didn’t ask for this. Whether it was a curse or a gift, he never asked for it. What did he do to deserve this? He shook his head and stood up. He had to keep trying to find a ride. He had to find shelter before the day ended and night hit and he was left out on the streets. He didn’t want that to happen. Not yet, anyway.


	4. Chapter 4

“Where are you headed?”  
He was so, so thankful to hear those words. It seemed so silly, but those words were his saving grace. He had begun the long journey to Florence when a van pulled over and the window rolled down. The friendly mother inside asked him those four simple words, a kind smile on her face, and saved him. He hopped into the passenger seat and closed the door.  
“I’m trying to get to the Florence library.”  
“I’m headed to the pool over there, so I can drop you off.”  
“Thank you… Thank you so, so much.”  
He said, giving her praying hands. She only smiled.  
“It’s no problem at all. You looked like you might faint out there.”  
She turned up the air conditioning, blasting him with cold air. It felt so good. Before they took off, she reached behind his seat and grabbed a Capri-sun. When she handed it to him, he found it was cold, Kiwi Strawberry flavored. He drank it, closing his eyes and relaxing into the seat while he did.  
“What’s your name?”  
She asked as they hit the road.  
“Jasper.”  
“That’s a nice name. I’m Miranda. Maggie and Tom are the kids in the back.”  
As if on cue, the boy, Tom, started crying, rather loud and obnoxiously.  
“Oh, Tom!”  
She exclaimed, putting a hand back to touch the boy’s knee.  
“Maggie, can you give him his sippy?”  
She put her hand back on the wheel. A moment later, the boy fell quiet.  
“So, Jasper, what’s got you walking to the library in this heat? Why don’t you take a car?”  
“Uh, well, I can’t drive, honestly. And… Well, my parents have jobs, so…”  
“Mm. What’s at the library for you?”  
“Computers.”  
“Don’t you have a phone?”  
“I left it at home.”  
He fiddled with his hands, getting nervous. He didn’t like lying to the kind woman, but he couldn’t just say outright, ‘my parents kicked me out because I froze a window’. She might think he was weird or crazy. She might laugh and ask for him to tell the real deal. But, that was the real deal. The cold, hard truth. No pun intended… Before too long, they reached the library. In Florence, the library was a new building and was built right next to a pool. The pool had two big water slides. A kitty pool. A lap pool, and a diving pool with three different diving boards to choose from, each at different heights. It was an extravagant pool for what little money was in Florence. The library was rather fancy, too. The inside was perfectly air conditioned. And it had several little offices in the front for people to hold meetings, and reserve for parties. The actual library was a little ways in. It held different sections for kids, teens, adults, fiction, nonfiction, all that stuff. And then, there were computers. You couldn’t use them without a library card and getting a library card was easy. Simply give a name and an address along with a phone number and you’re good to go. Jasper went to the computer and logged in using his card, searching the shelters in Florence. He was nearly brought to tears when all that came up was shelters in other towns. He couldn’t find any in Florence. There was a church that kept coming up, too. A Baptist church in Florence. He sighed and finally clicked on it for more information. After a bit of research, he found what he was looking for. It offered shelter. He quickly brought up Google maps, seeing as the library was getting ready to close. He printed out the map, happy to find that the church was only twelve minutes walking distance from the library. He could do that at five o’clock at night. The sun would be going down and it wouldn’t be so terrible to walk in the heat. Especially now that he’d had a chance to cool down and get hydrated. So, after retrieving his map, he was on his way to a safe place for the night.


	5. Chapter 5

Jasper was kicked out of the church the next morning so they could hold their church sessions. It was Sunday and he had to think about what he was going to do tomorrow for school. He had the clothes he needed, but he didn’t have a shower or any of that normal stuff. Plus… He was like the guy version of Elsa or like Jack Frost from Rise of the Guardians. Jack Frost sounded more accurate. He liked that better. Though, Jack Frost knew what powers he had and how to use them. Elsa was just beginning to learn. Why was he standing around comparing himself to Jack Frost and Elsa? He really should’ve been going to get something to eat. He was starved. He hadn’t had lunch, dinner, and now he was going on not having breakfast. He knew there were two McDonald’s in the actual town of Florence. Plus a Burger King by the school and a Subway a little ways down. There were two Circle K’s because one lost their liquor license and a new one was built to take its place. There were rumors that both would be torn down and one rebuilt. Some said there would just be a third one built. Whatever it was, he didn’t really care. What he did care about was getting food in his belly. There were new issues every day. It was ridiculous and stressful. How did anyone live on the streets? On his way to one of the Circle K’s, he suddenly felt his hands grow cold and the hairs on his arms stood on their ends. He cursed under his breath and ran to the Circle K, then ran to the back, entering the bathroom. He checked the stalls, then locked the bathroom door so no one could get in and see whatever was about to happen. What exactly was gonna happen? Anything? Something? Was it gonna be good or bad? Would it be dangerous? He panted hard and stared down at his hands, pressing his back against the door. What was happening to him? He felt cold all over. His breaths came out in little white wisps that had his walnut brown eyes going wide. His heart pounded in his chest, sounding like loud drum beats in his ears. His panting grew worse, like he couldn’t catch his breath. He watched the mirror above the sink start to fog over, frost appearing on the corners. Was that because of him?! The mirror crackled and crinkled, threatening to break.  
“Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!”  
He whisper yelled, squeezing his eyes shut. How did this happen? What triggered this? How did he control it? How did he make it stop? Was that possible? The mirror was gonna shatter. Just like the soda bottle. It was getting too cold. He was getting too cold. Would he die from the cold?! And if he didn’t, how would he get out of the Circle K before someone realized what he’d done to the bathroom? Oh, God… What would happen to him? He had to hold in these icy powers. He had to hold them back. He couldn’t be found out. He’d be taken off the street and experimented on if someone found out. For sure. This was some freak ability that was out of control. It could be dangerous. People would want to study him. What would he do, oh God, what would he do?!  
Then, just like that, everything went quiet. The crinkling and crackling stopped. His fast beating heart had calmed. His breathing couldn’t even be heard anymore. The cold had left his body and he was his normal temperature. Was it over? He opened an eye. To his complete and utter shock, the bathroom was completely free of ice. It looked exactly the way it had when he entered it. Was he dreaming? Was this all in his head? What happened? He didn’t want to stay and find out. He quickly left the bathroom.


	6. Chapter 6

He went to the McDonald’s for breakfast instead. He hung out there for quite a few hours, trying to get his head together. Was what he saw real? Or, was he hallucinating? Had he been hallucinating the entire time? Maybe as a reason to cope with his parents kicking him out, he made up the whole ice thing. Maybe he was actually just crazy. Maybe he was in a mental hospital and there was actually no way to get his head together, because he was a nutcase. That could be the case, right? But, then, why could he feel and touch and see and hear and taste and smell everything around him? No, he wasn’t crazy… What he’d seen… What he’d felt… It was real. No one could make up those things. Right? If it was real, then… How did it all just disappear the way it did? Did he absorb it or something? Because that whole bathroom was freezing and even the mirror was showing signs of it. It couldn’t just disappear. It had to’ve gone somewhere. So, where? Where did it go? Did it all melt and go down the drain before he opened his eyes? What exactly happened? None of it really made sense. How could any of it make sense? All of this was unheard of. This stuff only happened in books and movies. It didn’t happen to real people. And yet, it was. It was happening. To him. He wanted to know where all of this came from. Why he had it. How to get rid of it. And what about school? Could he go to school like this? Well, he had to. If he wanted to graduate, didn’t he have to be at school first? But… Wasn’t his freak ability more important than going to school and graduating? His priorities were all mixed. So were his thoughts. So was his life. It was all just one big jumbled mess. He didn’t know how things were going to go from here on out. He just needed to stay calm and hope for the best. Things would work out for him. Right? He hoped so.


	7. Chapter 7

He passed the day wandering around the town. The library was closed on Sundays. Otherwise he would have stayed there, reading books or something. He slept in the church again and got ready for school the best he could. Next, it was off to school. He went to his classes and everything seemed to be going alright. Until lunch.  
He could hear kids whispering and see their glances. They were talking about him, he was sure of it. Why, though? Did they know about his secret ability? Or was it his hair they were whispering about? Surely they didn’t know he’d been kicked out of his own home due to some new magical ability. Or maybe it was because they knew he hadn’t showered. Was his hair greasy? Did he smell? Did he have something on his back? What was it? Why were they talking about him? He wasn’t anything interesting. Well, not usually. A girl came up and touched his shoulder, giving him a look of sympathy.  
“I’m so sorry…”  
That had him confused. Sorry for what? He was about to ask, but she had already walked away. What was all that about? The intercom sounded and a few jumbled words came out. He couldn’t hear it over the sound of talking students. Though, he thought he heard his name. Just in case, he went to the office. When he got there, he felt his blood run cold. There were two police officers that looked at him when he came in. What were the police doing here? Were they here for him? Did they find out about his frozen ability? Did his parents call the police on him?  
“Are you Jasper?”  
“Uh…”  
He took off running, out the office doors, down the sidewalk to the school’s front gates. He could hear the policemen behind him, shouting at him to wait. They were giving chase! The adrenaline kicked in and he ran down the sidewalk, not sure where he’d be going, just that he needed to get away. He was about to cross the street when a car pulled out in front of him, the window down. He skidded to a stop and looked wide eyed at the woman inside.  
“Evelyn?!”  
“Get in, get in, get in!”  
Jasper struggled with the door, then jumped into the car. The woman took off before he could even shut the door. He slammed it closed and watched the policemen stare after them from the sidewalk. One had his hands on his knees, the other was shaking his head.  
“Whew!”  
Jasper jumped and looked at his aunt. She chuckled as she stared at the road ahead of them.  
“That was exhilarating! I’ve never done that before. Have you ever done that before?”  
Jasper shook his head, then realized she couldn’t see him.  
“N-no…”  
“Well, it’s not the first illegal thing I’ve done today.”  
Jasper looked at her, petrified. What had he gotten himself into?  
They drove out of Florence in silence. Eventually, Evelyn turned on the radio, changing the station from classical to 93.3, the alternative station. He could feel himself relax a little and the blood pumping in his veins was beginning to settle. He stared out the window, watching nature. He saw prairie dogs running about and hawks searching for prey. It took him a minute, but he looked at his aunt. Evelyn wore her chocolate brown hair in short curls. She got her blue eyes from her father and freckles from her mother. They stood out against her pale skin, like drops of rain on a window. There was so much he wanted to ask her, but he wasn’t sure what to start with. He took some more time to think, staring out the window again. This was all so crazy. Frozen powers… Police chases… Aunt Evelyn appearing from the dust… His world didn’t make sense anymore. And he felt this was only the beginning. Things were going to get a lot more hectic.  
“Where are you taking me?”  
He finally asked.  
“First, shopping. You’ve got nothing as of right now.”  
She was right. He’d left his duffel bags at the church. The only thing he’d brought to school was a laptop and notebook. He’d left both in his classroom.  
“Do you know why the police were after me?”  
“Yes… Unfortunately.”  
Evelyn pulled off to the side of the road and gave Jasper a hard stare.  
“This is going to hurt you. But, I need you to be strong. You have a very long journey ahead of you. Very long. There are gonna be things you don’t understand, but you’ll be alright as long as you remain strong.”  
Jasper gulped. Could he remain strong? What was this long journey? What was Evelyn talking about?  
“Jasper… Your parents are dead.”  
It felt like he had struck a brick wall. His heart sank into his gut. He felt tears forming as he whispered,  
“You’re lying…”  
Evelyn was silent, her head hanging low. He knew deep down that she wasn’t. The tears began to fall and he covered his mouth with a shaking hand. Evelyn’s gentle hand touched his back and rubbed it in circles while he cried and sobbed, becoming a complete mess in the passenger side of her car. When he was all cried out, she began to speak. He felt numb and the words barely reached his ears. He began to really listen when he heard one specific word.  
“...murdered. The police were going to take you in for questioning.”  
“Questioning? They think I did this?”  
“You’re a suspect.”  
“I’m not a suspect! I’m their son! I didn’t kill them!”  
Jasper held his head and breathed heavily. How could all of this be happening? He threw open the car door and fell out into the dirt, vomiting into a bush. He heard the other car door open, then Evelyn was there, rubbing his back.  
“I know this is a lot to take in. We’ll go slow. I’ll tell you everything I can.”  
Jasper panted and wiped his mouth, then stood and turned to face his aunt.  
“Evelyn… What is going on?”


	8. Chapter 8

She didn’t end up telling him anything of use. She was saving it for after he’d calmed down. They went shopping, bought clothing, shoes, among other things for hygiene and the likes. Everything one might need for a vacation of some sort. They picked up snacks, making Jasper worry. They were going on a trip. But a trip to where? Once the groceries were in the car and they were on the road, he decided to ask.  
“Where are we going?”  
“A safe place. Somewhere out of state.”  
“Out of state?”  
“Yes. Don’t worry about it until we get there. You’ll be fine.”  
Jasper huffed out a breath and sunk back into the seat. He stared out the window and Evelyn turned up the music. Thoughts were swirling in his head again and he couldn’t get them to stop. Who murdered his parents? Why? Did it have anything to do with his current situation? What was his current situation? Evelyn said they were going to a safe place. Was Arizona no longer safe? Probably. How could anywhere be safe when he had uncontrollable powers? Jasper huffed out a sigh and closed his eyes. Maybe things would work out. Evelyn seemed to think so. She was so calm. Especially for knowing her sister and brother in law were dead. It was strange. What things was she hiding? He decided to stay quiet. He was tired. He’d had a strange and tiring day. And this would just be the beginning of strange and tiring days.


	9. Chapter 9

When Jasper awoke, they were at a gas station. Evelyn reached into the backseat and handed some of the food to him.  
“Fuel up.”  
She gave a little laugh at her attempted joke. He didn’t smile.  
“Well, it was a good try, anyway. You sit tight while I get some gas. Unless you need to empty the tank?”  
Evelyn said, getting nothing but a frown in response. She let out a long breath, then got out of the car to fuel it. Jasper sat there for a moment, watching her through the back window. With the engine no longer running and the music and air conditioning no longer going, things were awfully quiet. He looked outside and watched as others fueled up or went into the gas station to buy things or use the restroom. Maybe he should try and use the bathroom before they hit the road again. He didn’t know when they’d stop again. Plus, he could use a good stretch. So, he put the bag at his feet, got out, stretched, then went inside. The last time he went into a gas station, things didn’t end so well. He hoped this time would be fine. There weren’t very many people he could see inside the gas station. Maybe one or two heads peeking up from the aisles. He could faintly hear the news playing on a tv behind the counter, droning on about the heat. Arizona was in a dry spell and things were getting pretty bad. People were praying for rain and the American Indians were doing rain dances. Speaking of rain… Jasper went to the bathroom and did his business, then came out and started back through the aisles to the front. As he went by the front counter to the door, he heard his name and looked at the tv.  
“Mr. and Mrs. Holegate were found dead early yesterday morning. The police are investigating the scene and have one suspect in custody. Their son, Jasper Holegate, is still missing. If you have any information of the whereabouts of Jasper Holegate, we advise you call the number on your screen now.”  
His photograph was pictured on the screen, making his blood run cold. His face. His brown eyes, his old, muddy brown hair that fell into his face. His prominent cheekbones and strong jawline, dimples when he smiled. That was him. And he was in big trouble. Jasper let out a shaky breath, then quickly left the building and hopped into Evelyn’s car. He buckled himself in, then looked at his aunt who was chewing on a granola bar.  
“Evelyn, we gotta go. My face is on the news.”  
“Wha-? I haven’t even gone to the bathroom yet, Jasp-”  
“There’s no time! We have to go! You can pee in a bush or something later.”  
Evelyn gave him a hard, unhappy stare, but she started the car anyway and buckled herself in. They were on the road again soon after. Evelyn glanced at Jasper a little while later, then spoke.  
“We have to go to this car rental place in Yuma. There, we’ll switch cars and finish the drive to California.”  
“We’re going to California?”  
“Yeah… I wish you’d never left. It’d have been easier to protect you from there. You wouldn’t have wound up in the streets on your own.”  
Jasper gave her a questioning look.  
“Who says I need protecting?”  
“I do. You don’t know what’s out there, kid. You’re in real danger and not just from the cops. There’s something worse out there and it is coming for you.”  
Jasper gulped at Evelyn’s words. Something worse than being locked up? Did that mean… He was in danger of dying?  
“Don’t worry, kid. We’ll be fine. You know why?”  
“No…”  
“I know how to kick ass and protect my nephew.”  
Jasper smiled.  
“Really, now?”  
He said in a disbelieving tone. Evelyn smirked.  
“You’ll see. Once we get my truck.”


	10. Chapter 10

Everything went smoothly on the way to the truck. It was a sleek black four door Toyota Tundra that looked to be brand new. They parked the rental and Evelyn left Jasper in the car while she took care of the paperwork. Once she came back out, they began to transfer everything into the truck, putting the snacks up front, then everything else would go in the back. When Evelyn opened the back door, Jasper’s jaw dropped at the huge shotgun hanging in the back window.  
“Whoa.”  
Evelyn smirked.  
“Told you. And there’s more where that came from.”  
She tapped a lock box under the seat.  
“Can’t you get in trouble for that, though?”  
Jasper asked, making Evelyn smile.  
“Only if it’s loaded.”  
Evelyn started putting things into the backseat. Jasper snapped out of his daze and handed her the rest of the bags. Everything got settled into the back, then they climbed into the truck and left the rental car behind. When they reached the mountains and the radio no longer worked, Evelyn let out a heavy sigh.  
“I guess it’s time I told you.”  
Jasper looked over at her.  
“Told me?”  
“Yes. It’s time I told you about… Your ability.”  
“You mean the icy snowy weird stuff?”  
“Yes, that.”  
“Oh. Do continue, then.”  
Jasper folded his hands in his lap and waited for Evelyn to begin the explanation. She gave him a side glance, then blew out another breath.  
“It starts with a single human being. A man. He liked to tamper with science, specifically genetics. One day, in a petri dish, he fertilized an egg with the specific traits he wanted in the child. But, something went wrong. He had a jealous co-worker, envious of the scientist’s work and fame. He came into the lab one night after the scientist had left and he began to sabotage the fertilized egg, pouring chemicals into the petri dish in an attempt to kill the unborn child. The child survived it and was born as any normal baby. Except… She wasn’t normal. As she got older, things started to change. One day in her teen years, she set a building on fire using nothing but her hand. This woman, Pyro, would go down in hidden history as the first mutant to ever exist.”  
Jasper stared at his aunt with wide eyes and raised brows.  
“Mutant?”  
He whispered. Evelyn glanced at him, then continued.  
“Yes, a mutant. Pyro went on to get married and have children, then her kids had kids. And guess what? Once those kids reached their teens, they came into mutant abilities as well. Every other generation comes into this mutant gene when they reach their teens. It’s been going on for centuries, but it’s been hidden well by guardians. The families of mutants are watched closely until the day one of the children comes into their ability.”  
“Just one child?”  
“Yes. Rarely is there more than one mutant in the family besides the one carrying the original gene, one of the grandparents.”  
“So, one of your parents was a mutant?”  
“Yes. It was my mom. My dad knew, of course. She couldn’t hide something like that from her spouse.”  
“How do you know all this? Why didn’t my parents know about this? Evelyn…”  
Jasper was holding his head, so many questions swirling around in his head. She reached over and rubbed his back.  
“It’s ok. I know its a lot of information, but somehow still not enough. We’ll take this slow, remember? Give it a minute to process. Get a drink of water. Eat something.”  
Jasper did as he was told, picking through the drinks and snacks. It was a lot of information to process. Mutants? He was some kind of… deformity? But… The way Evelyn talked about it… She made it seem like the deformity, the mutation, was beautiful. Maybe it was, in a way. Maybe it was a good thing. Maybe it was a bad thing. Either way, it was great in Evelyn’s eyes. They traveled about an hour into the mountains before Evelyn spoke again.  
“You ready for more information?”  
“Yeah.”  
Jasper responded, looking at his aunt.  
“Your grandma, my mom, was a mutant. She could make gusts of wind, blow away the clouds and bring them back if she wanted. She knew one of her daughters would bear a child with the mutant gene, but she never suspected it would be your mother. We grew up, your mom and I, on stories of the mutants. Susan never believed in those stories, though. So, it must’ve really come as a shock to her when you suddenly started freezing things.”  
“Yeah…”  
Jasper looked down at his lap. His mother… She was gone now. His father, too. All he had was Evelyn. No cousins. No grandparents. No great grandparents. Evelyn was a good aunt, though. He couldn’t wish for anyone better to take him in.  
“Tell me about the guardians you spoke of. The ones that kept the mutants safe?”  
“Right. The guardians are the protectors of mutant children without homes or families. They watch over the children until they decide to go out on their own. The guardians are a novelty among the mutants. They don’t age normally. I mean, mutants already don’t age very normally, but they… Well, they stop aging at a certain point.”  
“They do what, now? How is that even possible? How do they do that?”  
“We don’t know. Or at least I don’t. Mutants are the most curious things on the planet. Nobody knows how to explain them. I mean, there are no two mutants alike. How do you explain that?”  
“Gah, I still have so many questions…”  
Jasper held his forehead and looked at the truck floor.  
“So does every other mutant like you. I’ll try and answer everything you throw at me, ok? Just ask. One question at a time.”  
Jasper sat up and looked at her.  
“Ok, then what else is out there? What’s worse than the cops?”


	11. Chapter 11

Evelyn was quiet for a long time. It made Jasper angry. She said she’d answer all his questions, so why wouldn’t she answer this one? Was it a lie that there was something else out there? Or what? What was she hiding?  
“Evelyn, you said you’d answer my questions!”  
“I know!”  
She sighed and shook her head.  
“Should’ve known you would’ve wanted to hear the answer to this…”  
She mumbled, then glanced at Jasper, who was staring at her impatiently.  
“Alright. We’ll make a stop at the Golden Acorn, then I’ll tell you when we hit the road again.”  
She said.  
“Deal.”  
Jasper responded. Evelyn nodded. And so it was. They stopped at the casino and gas station so Evelyn could take her bathroom break. Afterward, they hit the road again and she started to speak.  
“So, as I said before, there are things out there, worse than the police. They won’t just lock you up and throw away the key. No, they’ll study you. Experiment on you. Maybe even dissect you. And that’s only one of your enemies. Scientists. Your other enemy, is a mutant collector, I guess. There’s this man who controls monsters of his own creation. He sends them out after mutant children, once they hit his radar. And he has a very good way of detecting mutants in the exposed world. No one knows how he does it or why he’s collecting mutants. All we know, is that he’s dangerous. And mutants don’t come back once the monsters have them.”  
“What’re these… Monsters?”  
“No one knows that either. Because no one who has ever seen one, comes back to tell the tale.”  
Jasper went pale in the face and cleared his throat, looking out the window.  
“I think that’s enough knowledge for one day.”  
Evelyn glanced at him again. She’d frightened him for sure, but he had a right to know what dangers were out there, lurking in the shadows.  
“You understand now, right? Why we must get you to a safe haven?”  
“Yeah…”  
Evelyn reached over and squeezed his shoulder.  
“I won’t let the monsters get you.”  
“Thanks, Evelyn… That’s very comforting.”  
The words were said in a monotone voice, making Evelyn think Jasper was being sarcastic. That made her heart wrench. Was she bad for telling him about the monsters? He wanted to know… She had to tell him. She said she’d answer his questions. She couldn’t go back on that. He needed answers to get a grip on the world he was now living in. She had more that she needed to tell him, but he didn’t want to hear anymore and she wasn’t sure if he could handle it right away. Not with everything he’d already gone through.  
“You rest now, Jasper. We’ll be there soon.”  
“Don’t have to tell me twice.”  
Jasper leaned his seat back and eventually drifted to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Jasper jerked awake to the truck door slamming shut. He expected to find himself at some house or maybe a hotel or something, but they were at a gas station and he had a kink in his neck. He wondered how much farther it would be until they reached their destination; and what would happen once they reached it. He had no idea what to expect. Would there be other mutants there? Would it just be him? What would the guardian be like? Would they be mean? Would they be overly nice? He didn’t know if he could stand it if they were overly nice. What if they were somewhere in the middle? Like a mom. He might be able to tolerate that. If there were other mutants, would he fit in with them? Would they be mean? Would he survive by himself in this safe house? Or would he become more of a wreck than he already was? He was always filled with so many questions and there just weren’t enough answers in the world.  
Evelyn came and sat in the seat next to him, then buckled herself in. She put a bag in Jasper’s lap.  
“Breakfast, kiddo. We’ll be there in about an hour.”  
(It’s like 12 in the morning)  
“What happens, then?”  
“You go live with the mutants until you’re older. The monsters don’t go after the older ones. Or, at least that’s what I’ve heard.”  
“How old is ‘older’?”  
Jasper started looking through the bag, pulling out some sort of breakfast pizza. It was basically a bagel with plastic white cheese and burnt sausage. He made a face at it while Evelyn answered his question.  
“Well, that depends on the mutant. For some, it simply means until they’ve reached adulthood at eighteen to twenty. For late bloomers, it means reaching your thirties or higher before you can leave. Late bloomers are kids that don’t come into their gifts until their late teens to early twenties. So, that means you.”  
Jasper spit and choked on his drink, then whipped his head around and looked at Evelyn.  
“I have to stay in there until I’m thirty?!”  
“Something like that. But, don’t worry too much. It’s a wonderful place. I’m sure you’ll like it. You can get to know the kids, spend your days reading all the books in their vast library, climb trees and sunbathe on the roof… They have lots of things to do there. You won’t get bored, I’m sure.”  
“So, you know these people…”  
“Know them?”  
Evelyn snorted and practically choked on laughter, slapping at the steering wheel. All Jasper could do was stare at her odd behavior. While he loved his aunt, she could be kind of kooky sometimes. She let out a couple more chuckles and wiped a tear, then looked Jasper in the face.  
“No. I do not know them. It would be damn near a miracle if a mundane knew the people inside the safe house. I won’t even know you once you go in.”  
“What do you mean you won’t know me?”  
“They change your identity inside. You get a new name and a new life. You… Become someone different.”  
Jasper frowned and stared down at the sunflower seeds in his hand. His chewing slowed and he swallowed.  
“What if I don’t want to become someone different? What if I like who I am?”  
“You don’t really have a choice, Jasper. It’s either, die out here, or… Get a new life in there. And I won’t have you dying.”  
“But, you said you could protect me! You said you knew how!”  
“I can only protect so much! What happens when I run out of bullets?! Huh?! We both die. And I don’t think you want that to happen. So, I will escort you to your new destination for the next thirteen years.”  
The drive after that was rather silent. Jasper knew that Evelyn found this unfair, too. After he went into the safe house, would he ever see Evelyn again? What would become of her? He didn’t want to lose his only family left. What was he going to do…? Was there anything he could do? Probably not.  
Evelyn blew out a deep breath, then glanced at Jasper.  
“I have to tell you something… You’re not gonna like it. I have a lot to tell you that you’re not going to like. But, I have to tell you before you get out of this car and are lost to me.”  
Jasper silently looked over at her. More bad news, huh?  
“Your parents weren’t just murdered by some psychopath. It was someone looking for you. It could’ve been monsters, or that collector, or something else, but they don’t know where we are. They’ll trace your steps pretty quick, though. Once you’re at the safe house, you’ll pretty much disappear from this world. You won’t exist. Your trail will run cold.”  
“Then, what happens to you?”  
“Once your trail runs cold, they’ll be after me, to figure out where I took you. So, after I drop you off, we won’t be seeing each other for a while… I’ll have to go into hiding.”  
Jasper felt his brows pull together and his heart clench. He didn’t want to hear those words. He knew something of the sort would be true, but saying it out loud, made it become real. And the real truth hurt so much.  
“Evelyn, I don’t want to leave you. I’ve already lost my entire family. My mom, my dad, both sets of grandparents… I can’t lose you, too! You’re all I have left!”  
Evelyn let out a shaky breath.  
“I know… It’s hard, but that’s life. You’ll get over it, Jasper.”  
Jasper stared at his aunt, feeling the tears gathering. His vision became blurry and the tears began to fall like raindrops on a window. He was going to lose the last stable thing in his messed up life. He was going into the complete unknown. And he couldn’t turn back. There was nowhere else to go.  
“You’ll be ok, Jasper. I promise, you’ll be ok.”  
“It’s unfair! All of this is so unfair! I never asked for this!”  
Evelyn pulled off to the side of the road and unbuckled her seatbelt. She leaned over and hugged her nephew close.  
“I hate this just as much as you do! How do you think I feel? You’re all I’ve got. There’s… Nobody left. Just you and me… And I have to let you go, too. I will be all alone for a very long time if we are to ever see each other again. All of this… It is unfair and it’s so hard. But, we just have to get through it, you know? We have to push through…”  
Jasper sobbed into her shoulder, squeezing her tight. He never wanted to let go.


End file.
